Global Arc

Are simpler theories more likely to be true? Can testimony make it rational to believe in miracles? Should defendants be convicted based on merely statistical evidence? Should the long-term survival of humanity swamp all other interests? Does physics show that there are probably many universes? Do probabilities make sense even if the world is deterministic? We will attack these and other questions through the lens of modern philosophical probability and decision theory.

The course deals with philosophy as practiced in Latin America from the Spanish Conquest until the contemporary period. Unifying themes are race, identity, and the relationship between European influences and the specific circumstances of Latin America. We will explore these themes by examining the following topics among others: the use of Aristotelian ideas in debates about the appropriate treatment of the indigenous populations of the Americas; and ways in which Latin American thinkers employed ideas of the French enlightenment, Comte's positivism and Marxist concepts to articulate programs for political and cultural change.

An introduction to the philosophical questions raised by biology, with readings from the philosophical and scientific literature from Plato and Aristotle to the present day. Topics may include: human nature, biodiversity, and the definition of life. Extended consideration will be given to Darwinian and rival approaches to evolution.

This seminar will focus on the philosophy of moral agency and responsibility, blame and punishment. It will examine how human interactions are permeated by evaluative understandings of agency and responsibility, and whether such evaluative understandings are well grounded. It will consider what implications this has for inter-personal relations, as well as for social institutions such as criminal justice. We will approach these issues from a multi-disciplinary perspective, examining how philosophical, scientific and institutional considerations can be brought into useful contact with one another. One 3-hour seminar.

An introduction to the free will problem and its implications for ethics and the law.

Conceptual and moral problems in the foundations of law. Topics may include: morality and criminal justice; the justification of punishment; moral and economic problems in private law (torts and contracts); fundamental rights and constitutional interpretation. Two lectures, one precept.

The idea of religion figures in social science in many ways. For example, religious identities figure in identifying social patterns. One can offer explanations for religious beliefs or practices. And one can classify religious identities, beliefs or practices and seek to explain patterns among religions. In this course we will consider questions about what sort of concept religion is, what the right account of that concept is, what conceptions are presupposed in various approaches to social theory about religions, and what relation there should be between sociological accounts of religion and the accounts of adherents.

An overview of the philosophical movement known as German Idealism, and with the help of several of its critics. Issues covered include: how various thinkers position themselves between Kant and Spinoza; competing notions of freedom; Marx's critique of Hegel; Hegel's legacy in Black thought; and more.

This is a class on podcast production for aspiring humanists, as opposed to aspiring journalists, open to undergraduates and graduates. In this class, you will learn how to produce narrative-driven audio, like short segments, episodes, or series, on a humanistic subject matter, but tailored for a non-academic audience. We will cover the technical basics, such as working on a DAW, editing, and sound designing, and we will cover the craft of finding stories, interviewing, creating narrative arcs, tracking, and using archival tape. We will also have industry professionals guest lecture in the class. Projects will be completely audio-based.

This seminar will examine how the global reach and new technologies of the Internet change the theory and practice of free speech. Questions we will discuss include: How do philosophical defenses of the right to freedom of expression, developed in the age of the town square and the printing press, apply in the Internet age? How should international conflicts over on-line speech be resolved? Is there a universal human right to freedom of expression or are there only culturally specific free speech regimes? How has the Internet facilitated new speech-based harms such as cyber-stalking and revenge porn, and how should these harms be addressed?